Rauner’s Irresponsible Fiscal Veto Unanimously Rejected by Legislature

Rauner Record Shows He Never Cared About Fiscal Responsibility – 

Ran Up the State’s Credit Card Bill to $16 Billion, Refused to Pass Budget

Yesterday, the Illinois House of Representatives unanimously overrode Governor Bruce Rauner’s veto of a bill designed to bring more fiscal transparency to the amount owed by the state. While Rauner’s action was questionable at best – nearly every editorial board called for the override of Rauner’s veto, it wasn’t surprising when his full record is taken into account:

• Refused to Compromise or Sign Budget: Rauner dragged out the state’s budget impasse for two years, leading to shuttered social services and higher state debt.
• Vetoed Budget Despite Credit Agencies Warning of Junk Bond Status: Rauner even called on lawmakers to sustain his veto and ignore the credit houses’ warnings.
• Eight Credit Downgrades: Eric Zorn of the Chicago Tribune wrote that at one point, the state’s credit downgrades were “accelerating” under Rauner.
• Tripled the State’s Bill Backlog: As of this morning, Illinois’ bill backlog was over $16 billion.
• Delayed Issuing Debt, Which Left State Paying Higher Interest Rates: Rauner tried to score political points by attacking bonding as a way to pay down debts, even though his budgets proposed the same thing.

Put simply, Rauner never cared about fiscal responsibility.

“Rauner promised voters he would bring the state’s fiscal house back into order, but all he’s done is made it worse,” said DGA Illinois Communications Director Sam Salustro. “Rauner forced the state to operate for years without a budget, ran up debt, and ran down the state’s credit rating. His failed leadership only means more debt for middle-class families. It will take years to undo the damage Rauner has done.”